“I don’t think he’s as physically or emotionally into the game as he has been in the past for some reason,” Valentine said. “But [on Saturday] it seemed, you know, he’s seeing the ball well, got those two walks, his on-base percentage up higher than his batting average, which is always a good thing, and he’ll move on from there.”

Youkilis has gotten off to a slow start this season, especially going by his standards. While he has started to turn things around a bit as of late, Youkilis was just 2-for-20 through the team’s first six games. He is 4-for-10 through three games against Tampa Bay this weekend, though.